This activity is about rocket shape and performance. Learners will test a rocket model and predict its motion. They will launch their rocket multiple times, make observations and record the distance it traveled. They will have the opportunity to...(View More) answer a research question by collecting and analyzing data related to finding out the best nose cone length and predicting the motion of their model rockets. The lesson models the engineering design process using the 5E instructional model and includes teacher notes, vocabulary, student journal and reading.(View Less)

Participants will experiment with ultraviolet light sensitive plastic beads, which are generally white but turn colors when exposed to UV light. Participants are informed about the nature and risks of UV light and are asked to be the scientist to...(View More) explore what types of materials keep the beads, and hence the user, safe from UV light.(View Less)

In this lesson, students learn that the sun heats up land, air, and water and study basic line plots of authentic NASA data. Students will practice drawing conclusions based on graphed data. The lesson provides detailed procedures, related links and...(View More) sample graphs, follow-up questions, extensions, and teacher notes. Designed for student use, MY NASA DATA LAS samples micro datasets from large scientific data archives, and provides structured investigations engaging students in exploration of real data to answer real world questions.(View Less)

This is an activity about sunlight as an energy source. Learners will create a plant box and observe that a plant will grow toward the Sun, its primary source of energy. This hands-on activity is an additional lesson as part of the book, The Day...(View More) Joshua Jumped Too Much.(View Less)

This is an activity about seasons. Learners compare the seasons though identifying seasonal activities and drawing scenes in each season. Then, they compare the temperature on thermometers left under a lamp for different lengths of time to explore...(View More) how Earth heats more when the Sun is in the sky for longer periods of time. Finally, learners use a flashlight and a globe to investigate how the spherical shape of Earth causes the seasons to be opposite in each hemisphere. This hands-on activity is an additional lesson as part of the book, Adventures in the Attic.(View Less)

This is a book about the importance of the Sun's energy as it relates to its impact on the Earth’s environment. Learners will read or listen to a story about a young boy, Joshua, who finds out that the Sun provides the Earth with energy in the...(View More) form of light and heat, which is necessary for all forms of life, for maintaining Earth's environment, and for allowing humans to produce their own forms of energy. Additionally, an extension activity is included, Searching for the Sun, where learners can conduct a hands-on experiment observing how plants grow towards sunlight in order to make conclusions about why the Sun’s energy is a necessary component for life. Reading and vocabulary activities are also included.(View Less)

This is a book about seasons. Learners will read or listen to a story about two twins, Matt and Matilda, who are tasked with creating a model of the Earth-Sun system for a science fair project. Through some wild seasonal changes they experience...(View More) while creating the model, the two come to a better understanding of the causes of Earth's seasons. An extension activity is included (Reasons for the Seasons), as well as reading and vocabulary activities.(View Less)

In this lesson students will investigate nitrogen dioxide levels in the atmosphere over a one-year period. The students will have to look at several regions from around the world to draw conclusions regarding NO2 amounts. From the plots, students...(View More) will have to brainstorm the reasons behind the variability in NO2 concentrations. Detailed procedures, materials, vocabulary linked to an online glossary, and teachers notes are provided. This lesson is from the MY NASA DATA project, which has created microsets from large scientific data sets, and wrapped them with tools, lesson plans, and supporting documentation so that a teacher, or anyone in the interested public, can use authentic NASA Earth system science data.(View Less)

In this activity about the Sun's influence on plant growth, learners will create a plant box and observe that a plant will grow towards the Sun, its primary source of energy. By periodically collecting data on the growth of the plant, they can come...(View More) to their own conclusions about why the plant grew towards the sunlight. One to two weeks are needed to grow plants for this lesson; also, time is needed to construct the plant box. Potting soil and bean seeds are needed for this activity.(View Less)

This is an activity about the motion of the Earth around the Sun. Learners will act out the motions of Earth as it orbits around the Sun over the course of one year, starting with modeling one day, then one year, and finally the months.